A Very Large Expanse of Sea by Tahereh Mafi is a diverse teenage love story dealing with Muslim racism post 9/11. Shirin, a socially excluded hot-headed Muslim girl living in a world thrown against her culture, meets Ocean, a star basketball player and school golden boy. This unlikely romance leads to discrimination, and the two have to deal with a world stacked against accepting others and love. This is a very solid book on diverse representation, as Shirin is an interesting character with a Muslim background. Ocean, too, is a character that is expanded on with a less standard background. However, it follows a basic romance novel format. Ocean is seen to be a perfect character and lover with no obvious flaws. The only tension in their relationship is Shirin, and how people treat her. All of the characters seem very interesting, but it feels like the novel was cut in half in order to fit some quota, as several characters are introduced, and then never touched again. The ending also feels rushed and short, without an interesting end. This book has the capacity to be more captivating, but falls short by not expanding on the world and characters it introduces. It is still a very solid interracial love story showing that no matter how the world toes and turns people, love finds a way to conquer all.